We'll Be Friends, Dead or Alive
by Icestar287
Summary: Everyone from the SSS have returned to life again after fixing regrets from when they had lived. But no one remembers what had ever happened in the "afterlife"... Will anything resurrect their friendships?
1. Alive Again

Chapter 1: Alive Again

I do not own any part of Angel Beats. But that'd be awesome… Anyways, this is my first story. Hope you guys like it :)

**YUZURU AND KANADE**

She was standing there, checking her cell phone. As he walked by, she started to hum a song, a song that would set anyone free from burdens. He heard the notes float to his ears, like balloons across the skies. The melody rang bells. He quickly twirled around and walked towards her as she started to leave. He reached out his arms, just a little further each second…

…She turned around. His face was in shock. He stuttered not knowing what to say.

"K-K-Kana-d-de" was all he could muster.

"Yuzuru! Is that…you?"

"Kanade! I've found you at last!" He broke down into tears. He held her and wouldn't let go. His grasp seemed to drive the life out of her, but he didn't care. He was finally with her again.

"Yuzuru…"

"W-What is it?"

"You're crushing me…"

"Oh! I'm sorry. I just can't believe I found you."

"I'm curious…"

"Huh? Why?"

"I remember you and you me."

"…That's true… We should find Yuri, Hinata and everyone else! Maybe they'll remember too!"

With that, they headed off and searched for their teammates, their friends.

**HINATA**

He was up. There was only 23 seconds left to the game. If they lost this one, they wouldn't make it to the semifinals. They were down two points, and two of his teammates were stuck on first and second base. His only solution was to hit a home run. The anxiety and pressure was getting to him. He breathed heavily, his heart was pounding. He had to do it, as a baseball player.

"You can do it. You can DO IT. YOU CAN DO IT!" was rushing around in his mind. He focused on the pitcher, then the ball. Would he pull a spit? A fast? He couldn't tell. The time came and the pitcher let out with all his strength into this one throw. Everything slowed, all he could hear was his heart pounding louder and louder. He swung, he swung with all his remaining might. The ball and bat collided resulting in the flying of the baseball. The shining sun was blinding his eyes. He didn't bother looking if it made it or not, he ran at the speed and grace of the wind.

The MC cried out, "HOOOOOOOOOOME RRRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNN!"

All Hinata could hear was the cheering and the applause of the crowd. What was this sensation he felt in his heart? He shook it off as he continued to run passed the bases. First, second, third, HOME! He did it. He got the team to the semifinals. His team carried him on their shoulders chanting, "MVP! MVP! MVP!" over and over again. He couldn't help but smile, but he felt a sort of emptiness in his heart, like something, someone was missing…

**YURI**

She was now alone in this world, no one to turn to. She needed to find a place for shelter, but where? She needed money, fast. "I need to find a job." Was the only thing she was thinking. She pushed through the sea of people walking against her on the busy sidewalks on a clear Monday morning. Passing store after store, there were no places requesting help. She was desperate. This made her uncomfortable. She was always the leader. But that led to the deaths of her siblings. She never remembered what happened after. Something was missing, something important. She didn't want to deal with it right now and quickly snapped out of her trance.

She was now running. Glancing at every window of every store and suddenly came to a quick halt. She was standing in front of a glittery and colorful sign taped in front of a glimmery and surprisingly cute store.

She let out a long sigh and face palmed like there was no tomorrow. "Well, beggars can't be choosers." Was the only thing she said. She opened the door quite swiftly which she regretted since what seemed a burst of rainbows and sunshine smacked her face. The store was so bright and colorful she felt she could fall unconscious at any moment.

As Yuri glanced around, she asked herself, "Ahh… should I really work here?..Whatever, what's the worst that could happen?"

**NAOI**

He chose to continue on, even though his father and elder brother were no longer with him. He felt _he_ was dead, yet he was alive. He never understood why his father and brother died when they were the ones who seemed alive. Naoi had work to be done, or he'd starve to death and join his family. He dedicated his time to pottery, putting his sweat and energy into it. He knew he couldn't stop.

"OWW! DAMNIT!"

He was rushing, or he wouldn't be able to sell any of his pots. He recklessly twisted his wrist and was in agonizing pain. He knew he had to finish, quick. He pushed himself by the time he finished, he felt limp like a doll.

He was muttering curses under his breath only thinking about his pottery. He was frustrated and torn remembering how his father never admired his work. He was never told he was special… or did he?

**YUI**

She was immobilized. Paralyzed. All she could do now was watch television all day and get pampered by her mother. She had wished for a better life where she could run, jump and take responsibility. But it was far from reach. She wanted to wrestle. She wanted to kick a soccer ball and score a goal. She wanted to hit a home run. She wanted to jam on a guitar and sing to the world. All she could do was dream.

With all her spare time, she reflected on her dreams, but something was supposed to be there, but what? What was it that tugged at her mind? She couldn't quite catch it. She needed to know. Maybe time would figure its way, like time would fix her. Hope was all she had.

**IWASAWA**

Music, it was her only escape. She played the many songs in her disposal. But one song was left. She had just remembered it. The notes were coming together very slowly. The lyrics were harder to remember. She pieced everything together. She didn't remember the name, but played from the heart.

_Iradachi o doko ni butsukeru ka sagashiteru aida ni owaru hi __  
__Sora wa haiiro o shite sono saki wa nanimo mienai __  
__Joushiki butteru yatsu ga waratteru tsugi wa donna uso o iu? __  
__Sore de erareta mono daiji ni kazatteokeru no? __  
__Demo asu e to susumanakya naranai __  
__dakara kou utau yo__  
__Naiteru kimi koso kodoku na kimi koso __  
__Tadashii yo ningenrashii yo __  
__Otoshita namida ga kou iu yo __  
__Konna ni mo utsukushii uso ja nai hontou no bokura o arigatou_

_My days end as I'm trying to find where to vent my irritation __  
__The sky is gray, I can't see anything beyond __  
__People who act like they have common sense are laughing; what kind of lie will they tell next? __  
__How can they treasure what they obtain with those lies? __  
__But we've got to move ahead, toward tomorrow __  
__So I'm going to sing like this__  
__You may be crying, you may be lonely __  
__But that's perfect-that's what human is __  
__The tears you shed say __  
__Thank you for giving life to us-beautiful, honest, and real._

She dropped her guitar at the very end. Her memories flooded in like a tsunami. One after another, they were flashing in. A tear slowly formed and trickled down her cheek and was quickly followed by many more. She fell to her knees. Iwasawa knew but one thing she had to do; she had to find her friends. Quickly packing her guitar and stuffing the money into her jacket pockets, she ran out of the train station and ran up the stairs. But, where would she start. She had just remembered, she was the first to regain life. Were they still in the afterlife world? Did they ever make it back? Where should I start? With the memories, these questions came to her as well.

Realizing she couldn't do this herself, she finally realized what she had to do. "Who would ever believe me enough to help me? No one will ever believe me… But who can help me? I can't do this myself?" whispered the lonely Iwasawa.

Right on the spot, the brightest of all ideas had occurred to her. She quickly ran back to her house, the place she dreaded, the place she never wanted to return.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

What has happened to the other members of the SSS? What will become of the friends? Will they ever see each other again? Find out more next time :D


	2. Shining Faces

Chapter 2: Shining Faces

**YUZURU AND KANADE**

They continued to search. They were persistent. They needed a sign, anything. The sun continued to glide across the sky and the crowds continued to grow. They seemed to be walking in circles. Yuzuru and Kanade both knew they weren't making any progress. They needed a plan, a start, a clue. As each person walked on by, Yuzuru couldn't recognize any of their faces. Kanade could see the tension in his eyes. Kanade tugged his shirt.

"Yuzuru."

"What is it Kanade? Did you see someone? Who is it? Where are they? Come on! We need to go!"

"Yuzuru. Listen to me. Listen to yourself. You must be worn out. Let's continue tomorrow."

"O-Okay. This hunt has been keeping me on my toes. I mean, this _is_ the first day. We'll find them, right?"

"We'll find them. I promise."

"Good. Thank you."

"It's noon. We should go home for some lunch now."

"Umm… do you wanna stay over at my place? I live alone… And… I don't… want to.. um.. lose you again."

"Is that alright with you?"

"Of course!"

Yuzuru quickly grabbed a hold of Kanade and he swiftly sprinted to his house. He felt warm inside, a feeling he hadn't felt since he was in the Afterlife. They arrived at his house, and he furiously dug his pockets for his keys. He unlocked the door and guided Kanade into his house. It wasn't the grandest house, but it was decent enough to house a family of two to three.

Kanade made herself comfortable on the Tatami Mat in front of the television. She turned it on and the news came on. As she watched, Yuzuru set up her room. Yuzuru paused, he saw how intrigued she was with the news report. He set himself next to her.

The reporter was in front of a burning building right next to the Grandberry Mall! A crowd was gathered around the building. The camera closed in on the fifth floor. One window was constantly spewing flames and raging violently. The window next to it was less wild. There was a man. He was waving his left arm in a swift motion. He was carrying a baby in the other hand. Yuzuru was taken back. He needed to help them, isn't that why he wanted to become a doctor? He wanted to help others.

"Kanade. We must go. There must be _something_ we can do."

"But…it looks…dangerous…do we ha—"

Yuzuru gave such a pleading face that Kanade had no choice but to go along with it. "Okay, let's go."

She got up and headed for the door. Yuzuru reached for the remote. Right before he pressed the button, he saw a somewhat scrawny boy in raggy clothing. He seemed to be healthy, but didn't attain the best hygiene. He was carrying a pot decorated with the most dashing colors, the most graceful streaks and strokes. He looked both sides of the road. He then headed to the back of the Grandberry Mall. He checked if anyone was around, then quickly slid into the back door and disappeared like a shadow in the sun. The power was already off, so he just put the thought in his back pocket.

"Yuzuru, come one. Let's go. You want us to help, right?"

"Uhh. Yeah. Let's go."

Yuzuru held Kanade's hand and he quickly withdrew. He blushed along with Kanade. He didn't have time for this, so he held her wrist and dragged her along with him. They scrambled for the building. As they got closer, they could see the gigantic cloud of smoke rising from the building. Yuzuru decided to head towards it. Yuzuru slowed down as Kanade and he reached the site of the fire. He saw the man and baby yelling and crying in desperation. At the corner of his eyes, he saw a squadron of guards enter the back of the Grandberry Mall. Whatever. Looking both ways, he didn't see or hear any signs of fire trucks or ambulances. With no time in his hands, he ran in.

"Yuzuru! NO! I can't lose you again!"

He turned and looked back, "I have to. If I don't it'll be too late! I'll be back." He swirled back and ran in. Everyone started gasping and screaming.

Kanade was all discouraged but couldn't afford to lose Yuzuru again. She sprinted in right after him. The flames came down and the burning tower consumed three more lives…

**YURI**

She sat down behind the counter, and put her head down. All these colors were destroying her eyes. She closed her eyes and heard the loud screaming and yelling on the News Report on the T.V. next to the cash register. She slowly lifted her head up and was captivated by the action. She felt she needed to help. She didn't see any fire trucks or ambulances.

She quickly flung the store door open and yelled to the other employee organizing the shelves, "I'M LEAVING EARLY! THE KEYS ARE ON THE COUNTER! THANKS!"

She left before the other could respond. She sprinted and glided past everyone. The crowd only got bigger, so she slid into an alleyway, climbed the ladder onto the top, and risked her life by leaping rooftops. She suddenly stopped, almost causing her to plummet to her death. The next jump was too far. She was itching her head violently.

"GAAAAAHHH!"

She was in a rage. Yuri needed something. She breathed slowly and looked around. It was as if an angel shined a light on her. She found a long metal pole. Would she walk across it? No… She thought to herself, "My life is way too boring… why not try pole leaping?"

She took the pole and backed up. Deeeeeeep breaths. Whooo. Yuri ran.

"!"

She dramatically dug the pole into the concrete. Everything slowed. Her feet almost reached the next building.

"…Eh..?"

She stayed in mid-air and turned her head, remembering that metal doesn't bend easily… She looked down, then up.

"Oh crap….." She fell and clawed the air.

"DAMN YOU STUPID ASS POLE!"

She pushed the pole away and persistently climbed the brick wall, constantly descending and ascending until she finally reached the top.

She laid down and sighed. "Note to self: next time, ride a bike, take the bus, or even hitch hike, anything is better than leaping over buildings with a pole… Hm.."

She had to go. She was so determined; she sprinted so quickly it was as if there was no spacing in between the buildings. She seemed to have a rare medical disease, a rare case that can only be induced on one person; it was called the "Yuri-goes-crazy-and-you-wanna-get-out-of-the-way Disease"…

Yuri closed in on the building and leapt into a window of the building that didn't spit fire. She hurt her ankle in the process. She stayed for a while. She couldn't stay conscious. Her eyelids drooped, her hand released her ankle, and she fell onto the floor. Was this the end for Yuri?

**NAOI**

He was running to safety. He turned and saw the fire. Tch, if only I could have sent rain down like God. I am God… but not fully restored, for I can be living in luxury right now.

*Panting*

He reached the second floor without damaging the vase. "Heheh, looks like I lost …those fools. I need…to…get to the…auction…"

He headed towards the staircase and a squad of guards rushed up.

"He-Hey! Get back here!" yelled one of them. Naoi raced away.

The guard called into his walkie talkie, "Calling all mall cops, we got a runaway. I repeat, we got a runaway! He snuck from the back of the "EMPLOYEES ONLY" door! He also stole a vase! At all costs, catch that son of a…!"

Everywhere he saw, there were guards. Naoi slipped into a bathroom stall.

"…Shit…"

He opened the air vent, but where would the vase go…? He had no other choice; he stuffed the vase with toilet paper and wrapped it with layers of toilet paper. He heard loud barrages of footsteps coming closer to the bathroom. Naoi wasn't too worried. It was a big bathroom with tall stalls. He climbed on top of the toilet and placed the vase on the bottom of the vent. He slowly climbed up. He closed the vent lid. As he did so, guards kicked open the stall doors and found only some men with their pants on the floor. They slowly backed away…

"Heh, that's right you gay dumbasses."

He quickly crawled in the vent and glanced through each opening to see the stage. He was gonna be late. He ended up at a really dark area of the venting system. He took one more crawl…he fell… he then landed on his butt and safely caught the vase. He looked out the opening and realized he was on the first floor. He got out finding that there were no guards to be found. Naoi hugged the vase over to the directory and found the stage.

There were coincidentally guards protecting the perimeter of the stage. Mother a' Pearl… The auction was starting. Everyone sat down and the guards bordered the area of this event. This was his chance. He sneaked behind stage. He saw the flames rising and raging from the skylight.

"Where are the firemen?"

"Why don't we start this very long and boring auction in which I don't understand why people actually stay and wait! Let's go!" cried the MC.

Naoi thought to himself, "Okay, let's go."

**YUZURU AND KANADE AND YURI**

"Yuzuru! Wait for me! AHHH!"

"KANADE!"

Flames continued to pile higher. Yuzuru clung onto Kanade.

"Don't ever let go. I can't lose you. Not again. Now, let's go."

"O-Okay… Yuzuru, lead the way."

They ran up the stairs and halted. At the next set, they saw a part of a corpse. Someone died.

"No! Are we too late?"

The leg started to move.

"Ahh!" cried Kanade.

The "corpse" got up and ran away.

Yuzuru shouted, "Wait! Don't go! Come back!"

They flew up flights of stairs in pursuit of the figure. They found it. It was standing in front of the door where a lot of smoke and fire was seen to be emitting. The figure went in.

"Wait! Be careful!"

Yuzuru went in as well with Kanade right behind him. The figure pulled the man up and carried the baby. The flames illuminated the room more clearly. Yuzuru and Kanade were in shock. The girl had magenta hair flowing down her head, a bow on her head, and an agile and graceful body. They found Yuri. It was as if the S.S.S. was bound by the red string of fate.

"What are you people doing here? It's dangerous! Get out before everything collapses!" cried Yuri.

"Yuri! We came to help!"

"…Eh…? How do you know my name? Are you a stalker? Do I know you? You look familiar? Or is it because you've been STALKING ME?"

"PriORITIES! We need to get them out. NOW."

Kanade carried the small child as Yuzuru and Yuri carried the man; shoulder by shoulder…by shoulder.

As they walked over to the exit, flaming pieces of the ceiling came down.

"Kanade! Be careful!" hollered Yuzuru.

"Ah! I have a bottle of water!" claimed Kanade.

"One bottle won't cut it!"

"It's better than nothing. We'll have to make do." scolded Yuri.

Kanade handed the child to Yuzuru. Yuri almost fell down at the weight of the man. She quickly got back up. Kanade reached for her handbag for her water bottle. She slowly poured the water evenly, but it wasn't fast enough, so the fire just kept spreading.

"This isn't working. What do we do now?" asked Kanade.

"We need a water source." said Yuri.

They looked around. They found a sink. Score! Yuzuru gave the baby back to Kanade and headed to the sink. He looked around feverishly. They needed… BUCKETS! He took two and filled them with water. He splashed the source with it. The ceiling bits were put out and were nothing but ash and debris, now. He filled the buckets again. As they all headed out, they could all hear the sound of a mighty roar hitting against the wall. They knew it was the firemen. They wouldn't survive if they stayed. Everything continued to collapse and burn. They scrambled down the stairs and another obstacle of fire obscured their path. Yuzuru dumped the water, and it quickly went out. Continuing, the conditions became worse. It was their last bucket; they had to use it well. The wall of fire weakened, but lingered. They were stuck. Yuzuru took his jacket off and slapped it against the fire. He ordered the girls to carry the other two over as he battled the flames.

Yuri and Kanade could see the light of the sun again. They sprinted out the exit. Everyone cheered. Kanade put the baby child on a gurney and saw the relieved mother rush over in a crying happiness. Yuri rested the man on a gurney as well as the attendants moved it into the ambulance. Kanade turned to the burning building and put her hand on her heart.

She thought to herself, "Yuzuru. Where are you? Come back safe."

Yuri couldn't help but think, "Where is that reckless guy? He seems… familiar. I need some answers. You better come back."

As the flames were dying down, a shadow appeared. Yuzuru came out alive, but somewhat injured. He walked out as everyone cheered again, but he staggered and fell unconscious. He only heard gasps and screaming before the world turned the sun off.

He woke up in a bright room with many people in pink, turquoise and white frantically walking around with carts and clipboards. Two figures came into the large hall…

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

Yeah, it's the hospital… Wait until next time! Sorry for the wait. The coming chapters will come by quicker :D I hope…


End file.
